The 10 Best TV Comedies of 2013

Our picks for the greatest comedy shows from the past year.

Ten years ago, Hollywood was running scared because the major networks were embracing reality TV and crowding out the half hour sitcom. A decade later, reality shows are still around, but comedy has made a comeback. Between cable and broadcast networks, there may be more comedy shows on TV now than at any other point in the history of the medium.

The downside of that is that a lot of television comedies have regressed to the ‘90s and seem content to stay that way forever. For example, pick any show on CBS. Even NBC is apparently running away from the smart comedy brand that it had built on Thursday nights, as its new comedies have become increasingly dumb and bland.

However, some of the best comedies are still on network TV, with a few cable series also finding a place on our annual list of the 10 Best TV Comedies. “Louie” is out this year, because no new episodes were produced and shown in 2013. We also missed “Community,” the winner of this list for the past three years. Technically, “Community” was still on the air, it just wasn’t anywhere near its former glory. Hopefully by this time next year, “Community” will be back where it belongs under Dan Harmon’s guidance and the sixth season will be a reality.

In the meantime, keep in mind that comedy is subjective. So feel free to disagree with this list and share your own choices in the comment section below!